CAPA WORLD

Claire Shrader is an official CAPA blogger for spring 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Pre-Occupational Therapy major at Mississippi College, she is studying abroad in Buenos Aires this semester.

In her last post, Claire reflects on her study abroad, international internship, and living experiences in Buenos Aires, and how the past few months will color a lot of her life and friendships.

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It’s so easy for people to ask, “Oh my gosh how was your semester abroad?!” but the answer is so complex.

Enjoying some Coca-Cola with my friends before we say goodbye to Argentina!

It was amazing, in so many ways: amazing to get to use my Spanish in new settings, amazing to have an international internship and to learn how to work in the Argentine work environment, amazing to build community and to get to know people I met on my high school trips in a deeper way.

Marianne is an official CAPA blogger for summer 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Sociology of Law, Criminology, and Deviance major at the University of Minnesota- Twin Cities, she is studying abroad in Sydney this semester.

In this week's post, Marianne introduces us to her lively bunch of friends she shares an apartment with in Sydney.

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After having lived in a single room for the past couple of years, learning that I was going to not only share my room with someone else, but also my apartment with seven other people, was a little scary. Despite my initial reservations, I have come to love and appreciate each and every one of them. I’ll introduce you to a couple of them now.

Meet my roommate Rachel.

My Roommate Rachel

Rachel is my roommate. She is studying Marketing and Human Resources Management at the University of Pittsburgh. She is really sweet and caring, and loves reading. Her favorite things about Sydney are the tacos (she hasn’t been to Mexico yet, but she’ll hopefully come visit me someday to try *real* tacos!), living so close to the beach, and all the coffee shops. Her favorite beach so far has been Manly, since it is just a ferryboat ride away!

Brandon is an official CAPA blogger for spring 2018, sharing his story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Political Science major at Clark University, he is studying abroad in Dublin this semester.

In his last post, Brandon reflects on his semester abroad and shares 3 major ways he has changed, as well as vital advice for future study abroad students.

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Hello, I hope your week is going well! This is my last post as an official CAPA blogger, and it is bittersweet. On one hand, this means that my time studying abroad is over and I get to return home to see friends and family, but on the other, I have had the most amazing experiences of my life while in Dublin and Ireland now feels like my home-away-from-home. I should add that I will not be returning home immediately, however. I am currently on a family vacation around Europe, and I will be spending some part of the summer working on a vineyard in Spain.

This is me outside Temple Bar.

I would like to spend my final post reflecting on my study abroad experience. Looking back on who I was before going abroad and who I am now, I can see several significant, positive changes. First, I am far more confident in myself. Being abroad separates you from your traditional support networks, be they friend or family-based, and it forces you to find strength within yourself. Second, I am more comfortable being friendly with strangers.

We’re very excited for you to meet our team of official bloggers and vloggers for summer 2018!

Each of them will receive a grant accompanied by an explorer fund while they are abroad to help them generate their weekly stories here on CAPA World. From their reasons for studying abroad through their reflection upon their return to the States, we will watch the stories of these students unfold as they learn about their host country, explore and discover the real city beyond stereotypes and expectations, interact with locals, focus on their academics and complete internships.

So who are they and where are they studying abroad?

JULIA SCHRODER, VLOGGER, BARCELONA
Julia is our very first student reporting from our brand new Barcelona location. She is excited to get to know this city's authentic spirit and all its locals. A Political Science and Global Studies major from Arizona State University, she's looking forward to being more spontaneous and more fluent in Spanish. Watch along as Julia gives us creative and incredible cinematic shots of Barcelona!
Look for Julia’s posts on CAPA World every Monday this summer and read more about her on her official CAPA vlogger profile where the archives will be compiled. 

Hannah Hardenbergh is an official CAPA blogger for summer 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. An American History and Literature major at Harvard College, she is studying abroad in Florence this semester.

In this week's post, Hannah shares about the time she recently spent in Cinque Terre and what it's like to be spontaneous in new places.

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Ciao! As I sit on a train back to Florence from a day trip in Siena today, I can’t help but reflect on my adventures so far in Italy and consider the value of branching out, engaging in a new experience, and exposing oneself to new surroundings, both cultural and environmental. Being present and willing to stumble upon beauty (instead of searching for something in particular) has led me to many exciting moments during my trips in and out of Florence. I decided to try to do an activity in each place I went to; I hiked between the coastal towns of Cinque Terre, “The Five Lands,” I biked in the breathtaking mountainous terrain of the Dolomites in northern Italy, and, due to extremely good timing of my travels, I got to see a historical horse race in Siena today. While it may seem obvious that traveling exposes one to new experiences and excitement, I wanted to share my perspective on branching out.

Corniglia from above.

This post focuses on the value of having a non-plan and being present. While I get to share with you the beauty of the places I’ve visited, I also get to emphasize the value in engaging in my surroundings in social and physical ways. Having grown up in a family with a very active lifestyle, I love working out. It makes me feel happier and as a student-athlete, I really enjoy endurance training like long runs and bike rides, especially when there’s a destination. So, I knew that my love for sport and the outdoors could lead me towards new experiences in Italy as well.

Nora Callahan is an official CAPA blogger for summer 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. An International Affairs and Math major at Northeastern University, she is studying abroad in Buenos Aires this semester.

In this week's post, Nora gives us a look at what it is like to live in a homestay and shares with us about her housemates in Buenos Aires.

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I am living out in a neighborhood called Belgrano almost at the end of the D line. There are a lot of good food and coffee options including cheap eats which are essential when adjusting to late dinners and the stress of exams and assignments start to kick in. I like to stop by a place right past the McDonald's on my walk home from the train for big 20-peso (about 80 cents) empanadas if I’m hungry after class and know that it’s still a few hours until dinner. Belgrano also has parks and museums. It was home to some famous historical porteños (translation: someone who is from or lives in a port city) and it is named after Manuel Belgrano, designer of the flag.

Megan, Valentina, me, and Sam in front of the big Colonia sign.
Watch out for our first album release! ;)

If, like me, you are a runner, it’s sort of a blessing to be this far from downtown because there are parks close by to run! We are also very close to Barrio Chino and something about walking through there, if I am a little stressed or homesick, maybe it’s similar to “the Irish pub effect” as my traveling cousin has called it, but it reminds me of D.C. or Boston or other cities I’m tied to back home and it can be calming that way.

Allyson Barnes is an official CAPA blogger for summer 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. An Anthropology, Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, and Studio Arts major at University of Colorado - Boulder, she is studying abroad in Florence this semester.

In this week's post, Allyson attends a My Global City cooking class with her roommates in Florence and learns how to make Italian dishes from scratch.

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As an adventurous person everywhere except for the kitchen, I was excited to try my hand at cooking some traditional Italian dishes when I made my journey to Florence. I was over the moon that I would not only be able to try that in my apartment, but also in an actual cooking class! Now, to give you some background on me, I am probably the worst cook you could ever meet. I once ruined a perfectly good can of soup trying to heat it up on the stove. Don’t ask me how, I don’t even know. I just have a knack for ruining foods that I attempt to cook. Needless to say, I was nervous for the class and the fact that I would have to learn how to make 3 courses of pasta dishes from scratch.

Ready to get started in this cooking class!

This was my My Global City experience. Two of my roommates signed up for the cooking class with me and I couldn’t recommend it more to someone looking for one of those unique hands-on experiences.

Julia is an official CAPA vlogger for summer 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Political Science and Global Studies major at Arizona State University, she is studying abroad in Barcelona this semester.

In this week's vlog, Julia shares how her decision to study and intern abroad came along and why Barcelona is the right city for her.

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Thanks, Julia!

Julia's journey continues every Monday so stay tuned.

Alice is an official CAPA blogger for summer 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Computer Science and Marketing major at Northeastern University, she is studying abroad in London this semester.

In this week's post, Alice tells us about her summer course on Post-War British Pop Culture and the different subcultures she has explored through this class in London.

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Upon receiving my schedule for CAPA, I was surprised at the timings of my classes. Here, I only have classes on Wednesdays and Thursdays; that’s twelve days of classes for the entire course of the program. I’d have five weekends. Compared to American school schedules, it truly seemed like a dream like true, but maybe only on the surface level. Imagine having a class that runs from 8:30am - 4:00pm every Wednesday and then a class right after that from 4:20pm - 7:50pm. Yup. Almost 12 hours of class straight. Part of me dreaded this. Wednesdays were going to be crazy for me. A seven-hour class? No way I’d survive.

Our first class: street art in Shoreditch where we did a walking tour to see several pieces of work.

After the first day though, I realized that this would probably one of my favorite courses I’d ever take, abroad or otherwise.

Claire Shrader is an official CAPA blogger for spring 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Pre-Occupational Therapy major at Mississippi College, she is studying abroad in Buenos Aires this semester.

In this week's post, Claire compiles a top 10 list that'll make anyone with a sweet tooth delighted in Buenos Aires.

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If you have a sweet tooth, Buenos Aires is the perfect place for you. There’s a never ending supply of sweets here, it’s been a city full of temptations for me. Though I haven’t quite accomplished my goal of trying all the alfajor (sweet cookies with a dulce de leche filling, sometimes covered in chocolate) options there are, I think it’s safe to say I’m practically an expert.

Decadent Argentinian dulces!

Though Argentina’s best alfajor is debated as hotly as the controversial president, anything with chocolate and ooey gooey dulce de leche is bound to be incredible. So, here’s my list of the top ten sweets in Buenos Aires.